tar

[ tahr ]

/ tɑr /

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See synonyms for: tar / tarred / tarring on Thesaurus.com

noun

any of various dark-colored viscid products obtained by the destructive distillation of certain organic substances, as coal or wood.

coal-tar pitch.

smoke solids or components: cigarette tar.

verb (used with object), tarred, tar·ring.

to smear or cover with or as if with tar.

adjective

of or characteristic of tar.

covered or smeared with tar; tarred.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Idioms about tar

beat / knock / whale the tar out of, Informal. to beat mercilessly: The thief had knocked the tar out of the old man and left him for dead.

tar and feather,

to coat (a person) with tar and feathers as a punishment or humiliation.
to punish severely: She should be tarred and feathered for what she has done.

tarred with the same brush, possessing the same shortcomings or guilty of the same misdeeds: The whole family is tarred with the same brush.

Origin of tar

First recorded before 900; Middle English noun ter, terr(e), Old English teru, teoru, taru; cognate with Dutch, German teer, Old Norse tjara; akin to tree; verb derivative of the noun

OTHER WORDS FROM tar

non·tarred, adjectiveun·tarred, adjective

Other definitions for tar (2 of 2)

tar²

[ tahr ]

/ tɑr /

noun Informal: Older Use.

a sailor.

OTHER WORDS FOR tar

seafarer, gob.

See synonyms for tar on Thesaurus.com

Origin of tar

First recorded in 1670–80; perhaps short for tarpaulin

synonym study for tar

See sailor.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use tar in a sentence

Overall, about 28 percent of the particles here were tar balls.
Surprising long-haul dust and tar are melting high glaciers|Sid Perkins|November 17, 2020|Science News For Students
Dean Obeidallah on how that separates scandal-tarred Democrats.
Anthony Weiner and Other Democrats in Sex Scandals Don’t Mention God|Dean Obeidallah|July 25, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Silkwood was tarred as a discontented employee who contaminated herself to embarrass the company she worked for.
Edward Snowden’s Whistleblowing Saga Mirrors the Karen Silkwood Case|Richard Rashke|July 2, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Is it worth reclaiming a label that has been so tarred by association with right-wing nationalism?
Can You Be a Zionist If No One Thinks You Are?|Jay Michaelson|March 19, 2012|DAILY BEAST

And when you work in the White House, stuff happens, like a Gulf oil spill that, fairly or unfairly, tarred his presidency.
Beware the GOP Coronation|Howard Kurtz|October 31, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Tea Partiers from Rand Paul to Sharron Angle have been tarred as wingnuts, kooks.
The Original Tea Partier|Bryan Curtis|October 20, 2010|DAILY BEAST
The tarred ropes quickly caught fire, and the ship was in flames.
Stories of Our Naval Heroes|Various
This consists of a tarred rope, or a flexible whip-stalk, three-fourths of an inch in diameter, with a swab or bulbous end.
Domestic Animals|Richard L. Allen
If he refused he was tarred and feathered, or set to ride upon a rail, and his house was defiled with filth.
The Political History of England - Vol. X.|William Hunt
The tarred canvas formed an effectual barrier between the interior of the hold and the waves without.
Toilers of the Sea|Victor Hugo
It was built partly of logs and partly of driftwood and tarred canvas.
Mrs. Skaggs's Husbands and Other Stories|Bret Harte

British Dictionary definitions for tar (1 of 2)

tar¹

/ (tɑː) /

noun

any of various dark viscid substances obtained by the destructive distillation of organic matter such as coal, wood, or peat

another name for coal tar

verb tars, tarring or tarred (tr)

to coat with tar

tar and feather to punish by smearing tar and feathers over (someone)

tarred with the same brush regarded as having the same faults

Derived forms of tar

tarry, adjectivetarriness, noun

Word Origin for tar

Old English teoru; related to Old Frisian tera, Old Norse tjara, Middle Low German tere tar, Gothic triu tree

British Dictionary definitions for tar (2 of 2)

tar²

/ (tɑː) /

noun

an informal word for seaman

Word Origin for tar

C17: short for tarpaulin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for tar

tar

[ tär ]

A dark, oily, viscous material, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons, produced by the destructive distillation of organic substances such as wood, coal, or peat.

See coal tar.

A solid, sticky substance that remains when tobacco is burned. It accumulates in the lungs of smokers and is considered carcinogenic.

Other Idioms and Phrases with tar

tar

In addition to the idiom beginning with tar

tar and feather

also see:

beat the living daylights (tar) out of

tar

Idioms about tar

Origin of tar

OTHER WORDS FROM tar

Other definitions for tar (2 of 2)

OTHER WORDS FOR tar

Origin of tar

synonym study for tar

Words related to tar

How to use tar in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for tar (1 of 2)

Derived forms of tar

Word Origin for tar

British Dictionary definitions for tar (2 of 2)

Word Origin for tar

Scientific definitions for tar

Other Idioms and Phrases with tar